Best PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds starting gear guide - what to prioritise, keep and ditch when you land

Love it or leave it, this is what to prioritise in those first moments when you hit the ground

This is the game. You’ve found the perfect spot to jump from the plane in PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds, and you are totally alone in a high loot area. This round has a chicken dinner written all over it.

But then you enter the first house and... disaster strikes: no backpack and top tier loot is just sitting everywhere. Obviously you take all the things you can instantly equip, like weapons, helmets and armour, but should you take that tactical stock for an M4, or maybe that compensator for a sniper, or what about that red dot just sitting on the table looking enticing?

All this loot can be very overwhelming, and choosing what to take when you are very low on space can be a difficult task. So we've separated it in to tiers of must take, the maybes and so on.

Tier 4 - Just leave it where it is

This is the lowest of the low, items you would question picking up even if you had a level three backpack. When space is tight in the early game you can totally ignore these and forget you ever saw them.

Pistol and Crossbow AttachmentsPistol attachments are so common that even if you did want one there is a very high chance you will find them somewhere down the line. Although, let's face it, you should never be in a situation where you have a pistol attachment in your backpack, it’s either on your pistol or you leave it on the ground.

BandagePerhaps a controversial choice, and certainly something you should pick up once you have more space, but in the early game you can skip these most of the time. The heal they give is pretty negligible and in the early game you probably won't need to heal all that much anyway. Once you have a backpack and some space, carrying 10-20 is a solid idea.

Molotovs, Smoke Grenades and Flash GrenadesOut of all the items in this category there is some wiggle room here if you tend to use any of these a lot. But, for most of us, these are fairly situational items and therefore can be avoided. Having a smoke or two for the late game is a nice idea, but they are so common you can load up later, and having them in the early game is not going to help much.

Gas Can
You can just straight up ignore these most of the time. Very rarely will you be in a situation where you need one, and even when you do they aren’t difficult to find. Worst case scenario you have to find a new vehicle, which again isn't that difficult. This might be the most useless early game item out there.

Quickdraw mags
A quickdraw mag offers a small advantage, but really they are pretty useless, with extended, and extended quickdraws, being the only ones you should care about. Throughout the whole game the case here should be put it directly on your weapon or ignore it.

Tier 3 - Take if you think you’ll need it

These items are certainly ones you should consider picking up in the early game, but only if they fit into your plans. If you don’t see it being useful then leave it right on the floor.

12 Gauge, 9mm and .45mm ammo
Having ammo is always nice, but these are the ammo types you should be using the least. If you are rocking a shotgun then you probably won't need more than 20 rounds in an average game, so keep this on the ground until you need it. For SMGs you might need a little more, but 9mm and .45mm is so common that taking it when you don’t have a weapon that needs it is a terrible idea.

Shotgun and SMG attachmentsYou would have to get really unlucky to be forced into running a shotgun or SMG as your main weapon for an entire match, so therefore you can afford to leave attachments on the ground. The general rule here should be if you have a weapon then put the attachment on it, if not then leave it on the ground, unless of course you specifically want to run one of these weapons.

Foregrips
Foregrips are pretty useful, with verticals being great for single shot weapons and angled being good for spraying. But keeping them in your inventory when you have limited space is a questionable play. Not all that many weapons hold them, so there is a good chance you won't use them, and even if you get a weapon that can hold one, you can probably find them by going into any building. They are surprisingly common.

AR attachments
Chances are you are going to run an AR in most games, so attachments are crucial. But always have in mind what you want to run on that AR. If you have a compensator in your backpack and then see a flash hider, make a choice, don’t take them both. It is a waste of space and having multiple solves nothing.

Tier 2 - Take it but drop it if you need to

Time to make some potentially tough calls, as we're getting into the territory of things you really want to have, but might have to ditch anyway. Basically if you see any of this stuff and have the space, grab it. But don't worry about ditching it if you need something more important.

2x, Red Dot and Holographic sightsThere are some people out there who prefer the iron sights, but chances are you are going to want some kind of optic on all of your weapons. Red Dots and Holos are pretty common but always useful, so having a couple early on is a good idea, and the same goes for the 2x. That being said if you need to make space feel free to discard these, as they take up room and can easily be found.

Sniper AttachmentsSniper attachments are pretty rare, so you should always pick them up no matter how early it is. If you have the space you will want to keep these for the whole game, because who knows when you will find a sniper. But the reason these aren’t tier one is because of the sniper spawn rate - they aren’t all that common and these attachments could end up being a waste of space. Keep them for as long as possible, but if there is no sniper in sight and you need the space get them gone.

Energy Drink
This is a pretty simple one, you should always have as many energy drinks as possible as it is always a good idea to use them if you can. But, as the worst of the boosts out there, it is the one that should be sacrificed if you need space. Simple.

7.62 ammo
7.62 ammo is not used by all that many weapons, if we ignore those found in crates, but it can be very important. If you end up running an AK or SKS you will need a lot of bullets, and they aren’t always that common. Keep this until you know if you will be running an AK, SKS or Kar98k, then drop it like it is hot if you don’t have any of those.

Frag GrenadesFrags are the go to grenades for everyone right now, so having as many as possible is a great idea. They do a lot of damage and make clearing out a building a lot easier, so keep them with you. But, there are more useful things out there, so drop them if you have to.

Tier 1 - Take this under any circumstance

This is the very best stuff you can get. Pick this up whenever you see it, even if you already have four in your backpack. You should drop lower tier loot in order to make room for these.

4x and 8x Scopes
Having some kind of range is key to a good run, as it allows you to scope out your path and find some unexpected pick offs. Having a 4x on any weapon is a good idea, so if you find a couple then certainly keep them both. 8x is great on some weapons, but you won't want two of them at the same time. That being said, keeping them to deny others from having them is a good shout.

5.56 ammo
5.56 is the ammo type used by almost all of the ARs in PUBG so there is a good chance you will need some during your run. In some games it can also be pretty limited, especially when playing in squads when everyone will need some. So if you see it, pick it up. Only drop this in the rare situation where you don’t have a 5.56 weapon going into the second half of a game.

First Aid Kits, Med Kits and Painkillers
You will take damage in PUBG, and being able to recover that health is one of the most important aspects of the game. These three are the most effective way of restoring health and should always be picked up. Sometimes you might not need to use many, but in certain situations you might be popping loads, so having a big stack is a great idea. Really, you shouldn’t drop these ever.

AR and Sniper Suppressors
There is no doubt that these are the most valuable attachments in the game. A suppressed AR or sniper can be enough to win a game, and it totally changes the way you play. As a result these are very rare attachments, so always take these as soon as you see them and never drop them. In the rare situation where you find two, try and make use of them both, or just keep them to deny others.